An avalanche of mail-in ballots in Colorado. But who’s counting?

Tracking election data in Colorado is kind of like approaching a water mirage on a long car trip. Just when you think you’ve reached that shimmery puddle of water on the highway, it disappears. One minute, The New York Times reports that 1.4 million of the state’s registered voters have requested mail-in ballots, and then, within a matter of days the number ups to 1.5 million. It’s enough to make a journalist (or anyone else who tracks this stuff) go crazy and start using overblown, flowery metaphors.

Toned-down Sarah Palin rallies thousands in Loveland

Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin retreated a bit from her typical attack mode at a campaign event today in Loveland, Colo.

Palin spoke to a crowd of 7,120 at the Budweiser Events Center around 1:15 p.m.; it was her second event in a three-stop swing through hotly contested Colorado today. This morning she visited Colorado Springs and she is due for Grand Junction this evening.

Elections bureaucracy jeopardizes half of homeless voter registrations

Homeless people who registered to vote in Colorado risk being ejected from voter rolls if they don’t pick up a confirmation letter sent by their county clerk. The problem has less to do with partisan politics than with the nature of homelessness and the complexities of life without a permanent address. In any case, advocates estimate only about half of homeless people cast their vote.

NY Times: Nearly half of Colorado voters requested mail-in ballots

The New York Times has caught up to the fact that, among other election-related hot-buttons, Colorado has become a poster-child for the mail-in voting movement. According to an article this week, around 1.4 million of the state’s 3.2 million voters have requested a mail-in ballot thus far — compared to only 668,000 mail-in wannabes in 2004. Voters still have until October 28 to request mail-in ballots.

Colorado election snafu roundup: Are we ready for Nov. 4?

It’s not just you. Colorado is looking a bit iffy these days in terms of election preparedness. And with less than three weeks to go until November 4th, things just keep getting stickier. But wading through the constantly breaking election muck can be a less than savory experience. So please, put away your wellies and let the Colorado Independent guide you. Each Friday until Election Day, we’ll publish a roundup of the week’s big news related to election bungles around the state. If you’ve got news or opinions to share, please add them in the comments section below. After all, we’re not as scientific as, say, Colorado’s new electronic voting machines. Read on for the roundup:

Registration errors may thwart thousands of new voters from casting mail-in ballots

For weeks, the election season mantra in Colorado has been “vote by mail.” But that advice may cause some problems down the line, when new voters with incomplete registrations don’t receive their ballots.

Governor Bill Ritter and several county clerks have consistently urged people to vote by mail this year, a practice thought to alleviate long lines at the polling places on Election Day. As of last week, more than 1.3 million voters in the state had requested mail-in ballots.

Non-profit groups demand “check box” voter fix today

Six organizations, including several that conducted voter registration drives in minority communities, have joined the cry for Secretary of State Mike Coffman to accept incomplete voter registrations.

Hickenlooper says ‘no’ to Amendment 46

Today at 2 p.m., Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper will speak out against the Colorado Civil Rights Initiative, a ballot measure that will destroy public affirmative action programs statewide.

Mail-in ballots short on postage will be delivered

The long-standing rumor that mail-in ballots missing postage will be chucked or returned to the sender turns out to be, well, a rumor.

Denver searches for fix to voter registration problems

Denver’s Election Director, Mike Scarpello, says he is concerned about the possibility that thousands of people will come to the polls on Nov. 4 and find that they are not registered to vote. And he’s looking for a way to fix the problem.